Caroline B. Burnett

Caroline Burnett is a Professional Support Lawyer in Baker McKenzie’s North America Employment & Compensation Group. Caroline is passionate about analyzing trends in US and global employment law and developing innovative solutions to help multinationals stay ahead of the curve. Prior to joining Baker McKenzie in 2016, she had a broad employment law practice at a full-service, national firm. Caroline holds a J.D. from the University of San Francisco School of Law (2008) and a B.A. from Brown University (2002).

Latest Articles

The world is facing yet another year of unprecedented changes and complex challenges making uncertainty the new normal.
In the Global Employer Magazine: 2019 Horizon Scanner we review the key themes and trends that dominated the employment law landscape in 2018, and explore the global trends and issues employers need to know about in 2019.
Click here to download the report.…

On January 25, 2019, the National Labor Relations Board reaffirmed its adherence to the traditional common law independent contractor test for determining whether a worker is an employee or an independent contractor under the National Labor Relations Act.
In SuperShuttle DFW, Inc., the Board expressly overruled its 2014 FedEx Home Delivery decision. In FedEx, the Board drastically reduced the significance of entrepreneurial opportunity in the determination of independent contractor status. FedEx emphasized the right…

In the wake of the #MeToo movement, a number of states (and New York City) now mandate workplace sexual harassment prevention training.
The chart below is intended to help multi-state employers keep track of their obligations across the country.…

Join us at 3:00 pm Thursday, January 24 for our California Employment & Compensation Update in our new Los Angeles office. A range of topics will be covered during our program which will begin with a panel discussion addressing emerging trends in advancing corporate Diversity & Inclusion goals, followed by your choice of updates on California employment law issues or on global share plan developments. After the program, we invite everyone to join for cocktails and hors…

2018 was, without a doubt, another extraordinary year for US employers. The #MeToo movement continues to have a tremendous impact on the workplace. In addition, the thorny issue of how to manage contractor classifications in the gig economy continued to evolve and new DOJ enforcement activity is heightening concerns about no-poaching agreements and other antitrust activity. In 2019, employers will confront a host of new laws in 2019 on topics ranging from sick leave, lactation…

This month California’s Department of Fair Employment and Housing released an updated Sexual Harassment Poster and Brochure.
Updated poster HERE (Dec 2018)
Updated brochure HERE (Dec 2018)
Either the poster or the brochure can be distributed to employees to meet legal requirements.
For more on new obligations for California employers with respect to sexual harassment prevention, click here.…

In the wake of the #HeForShe movement, California recently became the first US state to require companies to put female directors on their corporate boards.
Supporters of the law make a convincing business case for gender diversity, citing rigorous research findings showing companies where women are represented at board or top-management levels are also the companies that perform best financially. Beyond the business case however, there is also a sense that increased representation is critical…

Alyssa Milano tweeted #MeToo just about one year ago. Since then, we’ve seen unprecedented attention on sexual harassment in the workplace and a number of high profile individuals have been taken to task.
For employers, the spotlight, viral encouragement to come forward and public scrutiny is translating to an outpouring of claims and lawsuits. Indeed, in September 2018, the EEOC reported a surge in sexual harassment filings–more than a 50 percent increase in suits challenging…

Thanks to our Canadian colleagues for this alert: Jordan Kirkness & Susan MacMillan
Ontario’s revised regulatory framework for cannabis is now in effect. Bill 36, the Cannabis Statute Law Amendment Act, 2018, received Royal Assent and came into force on October 17, 2018, amending 18 provincial statutes including the Cannabis Act, 2017 (now the Cannabis Control Act, 2017 ) and the Smoke-Free Ontario Act, 2017 (SFOA 2017).…